Every character has some rough match-ups and Zangief is no different, so here’s a short list of those pesky characters who can and will, cause you pain and suffering.
JP
JP is the best zoner in Street Fighter 6 and he can easily pressure you at full-screen and even when you get close, he has very strong and disjointed normals that can easily be confirmed into a special to send you back full screen and the process to attempt to get back in repeats again. Should you get a knockdown or corner JP, you’ll still have to hope you read him on wake-up that he doesn’t use either drive reversal, or more typically (and worse for you) OD Amnesia, giving him advantage and placing two bombs on you that will explode as he combos off of them. PRAY you read it right and he will die, if you don’t it can and will spell doom. Drive rush in when he sets up his portals, do not give him those for free without closing the gap and at footsie range, the armour of stand heavy punch can help you trade though his fireballs and normals. Be sure to have your parry timings down too, you’ll need it with how much he’ll throw your way.
Mai
Mai has both the most oppressive projectile in the game, insane corner carry and pressure that is miserable to deal with. Invincible reversals of her OD DP and Super Art 1 (which buffs her already bonkers fan projectiles :’| ) once again challenge your pressure. She does typically play more close range than others on this list but she is an extremely strong character that should definitely be mentioned. BE CAREFUL, getting punished will land you in the corner and she can definitely bully you to death from there.
Guile
Another zoner, Guile will test your patience with sonic booms and flash kicks when you attempt to jump in. The name of the game is making the right call on when to jump in over the sonic booms. He does have good normal buttons but they are slower and stumpier than most but should still be respected. The best thing to remember is that Guile is a charge character and should he stand, he can’t flash kick until he charges down again, and should he move forward, his sonic boom isn’t charged either. Keep an eye on these little movements that give away what he’s ready to hit you with and it will definitely help, and for heaven’s sake, STOP JUMPING AT THE CROUCHING GUILE!
Dhalsim
The hardest part about fighting Dhalsim, is not getting bored. He’s not nearly as cool as the other zoners but probably the most annoying still somehow. Projectiles, long-range pokes and teleports mean you’re probably in for a long round. His defense is quite weak if you get in, and his only invincible reversal that he’ll have ready 9/10 times is drive reversal, read that right, and he’ll go down super easy. Good luck getting in though, it’s not going to be easy and will likely be a complete slog. However, the fact he is quite lame compared to the other zoners mean you don’t see him too often but every time you do see him? ugh.
I wish you luck against any of these, and should you end up playing against any of them in a row, I am sorry for your suffering. The challenge does make winning all that much more satisfying though. Just remember, you won’t improve against these bad match-ups if you don’t play them. Quitting out is for suckers, and you’re no sucker are you?
bye-bye now!
